Buhari gives legal backing to lockdown in Lagos, others —- signs COVID-19 regulations to enforce

Abiodun OBA

COVID-19 Regulations 2020, declaring coronavirus a dangerous infectious disease has been signed into law.

The Presidency in a statement on Monday night in Abuja, said Buhari acted in exercise of the powers conferred on him by Sections 2, 3 and 4 of the Quarantine Act (CAP Q2 LFN 2004), and “all other powers enabling him in that behalf”.

Buhari’s spokesman, Mr Femi Adesina, in the statement, said, “The Regulations, effective March 30, 2020, also gave legal backing to the various measures outlined in the President’s National Broadcast on March 29, 2020, such as restriction/cessation of movement in Lagos, FCT and Ogun State and others toward containing the spread of the pandemic in the country.

“In addition, to ensure that Nigerians can still perform on-line transactions and use ATMs whilst observing these restrictions, the exemption is granted financial system and money markets to allow very skeletal operations in order to keep the system in light operations during the pendency of these regulations.”

This gives muscle to the lockdown in Lagos, Ogun and the FCT directed by President Muhammadu Buhari.